One Word
by Cutie Pie Hentai
Summary: ONE SHOT Kagome is tired of the verbal abuse...tired of one word in particular...but what if that one word means something different to Inuyasha than it means to her? Rated for one swear word...used repeatedly...Sickeningly sweet- bring your toothbrush!


Disclaimer: Like much of the rest of the world, excepting one very lucky, and brilliant, Japanese woman, I do not own Inuyasha. Though, if she ever decides to rent him out for a few hours….

Kagome threw her notebook across the room and slammed her math book shut with an exasperated sigh.

"Ugh! Get out! Get out of my head, darn it!"

She'd been trying to study but her mutinous mind kept replaying her most recent fight with Inuyasha. Basically, she'd wanted to go home, he disagreed, she'd insisted, he'd called her "bitch," and she'd sat him.

Normal course of action for an otherwise normal day. But lately, the half-demon's verbal abuse had been taking its toll on the young miko. On word, in particular.

With another heavy sigh, she gave up on her homework and flopped onto her bed as tears began to fall.

__

'He didn't always call me a bitch. At first it was just wench or girl or idiot or weak human. Those were bad enough…What changed?' She thought back to the beginnings of the arguments of recent memory.

__

'Bout time! Why were you gone so long, bitch?'

'You can't go home! We need you here, bitch.'

'Why'd you stick up for that mangy wolf, bitch?'

'Let me look at your wound.'

'I'm fine, bitch.'

'Inuyasha, can we stop for a rest?'

'Feh, whatever, bitch.'

'Do you want some ramen?'

'Of course, bitch.'

'Inuyasha, did you see Kikyo again?'

'Don't worry about it, bitch.'

'Damn it! How could you be so stupid? You could have been killed! Why don't you listen, bitch?'

Kagome rolled over onto her back and stared at the ceiling. In truth, that last one had ended in a crushing hug. And during the others, Inuyasha's eyes had taken a pained look atop the usual annoyance.

But that one word…

Tears formed in her eyes again and she brushed them away furiously, her breath choppy. She felt foolish to be so affected by the one word. It was the modern connotations of the word that stung, even though she knew he couldn't be aware of how degrading the word had become, he still did use it as an insult. _'It's just Inuyasha's way right?' _She frowned. _'No…he doesn't call Sango a bitch. Or any other woman for that matter. Weak human, yes. Bitch, no…Does he really despise me so much?'_

She took another haggard breath, trying to calm her nerves. She'd decided. She would settle this once and for all. She would confront him and make him answer. _'Even if I have to paralyze him with sits.' _She told herself, now determined. _'If he really hates me, well, then I'll promise to just stay out of his way as much as possible until the quest is finished. Then, I can be out of his life forever.' _The thought brought new, traitorous tears to her eyes. _'If not, then he needs to understand how much it upsets me and promise to stop. I'll even go back to wench if he doesn't call me that anymore!'_

A new fire burned in her eyes as she steeled her resolve. She hurried into the bathroom to change and wash the tears from her face. She knew he'd notice the scent and she wanted to exude confidence, even if she didn't feel it. _'Now, to go back. The others won't be expecting me so soon, so I should be able to get him alone.'_

She didn't have to go far or wait long for her confrontation, though. When she reentered her bedroom, she found him sitting crosslegged, head bowed, arms around Tetssuiga, on her bed. Kagome stopped dead in her tracks.

"What are you doing here?" She didn't admit that she had just been on her way back to find him.

"I…uh…came to get you, bitch."

The added moniker only added more fuel to her anger.

"Ugh! OSUWARI! How dare you! I said I'd be back tomorrow…can't I have ONE moment of peace?" She screamed.

Inuyasha's ears flattened, but since she couldn't see his face, she couldn't tell if the cause was guilt or the pitch of her voice.

Then Inuyasha whimpered.

Kagome struggled to hold on to her ire, but the pitiful sound tugged at her heart.

Inuyasha whispered, "Damn it, bitch…"

Kagome groaned and walked over to Inuyasha. Placing one knee on either side of his waist, she sat on his back. "Inuyasha, we need to talk."

"What about, bitch?" He growled out around the fluff of her comforter.

She smacked the back of his head, feeling the anger returning and her voice rising, "About you calling me a bitch! Why? Do you really hate me that much? You end practically every sentence with it! Ka-Go-Me! I thought we'd already been through this. Haven't we established my name yet? Granted, bitch is better than Kik-…well, better that being called some other things. But I can't take it any more!"

"Kagome…" The subduing spell wore off and Inuyasha rolled over. Noticing Kagome was now straddling him, he blushed and pushed her off as he sat up. His hair hid his face but the normal gruffness of his voice belied a softer tenor that Kagome hadn't noticed before.

Kagome reached forward and lifted his chin so she could look into his eyes.

Pain, longing, fear, and so many other emotions swam in the amber pools that she couldn't decipher them all before he dropped his gaze to the floor.

"I'll ask you again, Inuyasha. Why? It's not as if you call everyone that. Why me?"

Inuyasha took a deep breath and swallowed. "Because…because I can't…because I don't want to say it to anyone else."

She looked at him puzzled. "So, you're saying you only hate _me_ enough to call me bitch? Is that it?"

Wincing at the hurt in her tone, his eyes snapped back to her, "NO! Don't you get it, bitch?"

Suddenly, she did. She did get it. The look in his eyes when that one word left his lips…She'd never noticed it before, but this time…this time she saw. And this time she understood. The words he couldn't say. The words he didn't want to say to anyone else. The words he wanted to say to her…

Her eyes grew round in surprise at the emotion that one word conveyed.

__

'Bout time! Why were you gone so long? I love you.'

'You can't go home! We need you here. I love you.'

'Why'd you stick up for that mangy wolf? I love you.'

'Let me look at your wound.'

'I'm fine, I love you.'

'Inuyasha, can we stop for a rest?'

'Feh, whatever, I love you.'

'Do you want some ramen?'

'Of course, I love you.'

'Inuyasha, did you see Kikyo again?'

'Don't worry about it, I love you.'

'Damn it! How could you be so stupid? You could have been killed! Why don't you listen? I love you.'

__

'I…uh…came to get you, I love you.'

'Damn it, I love you…'

'NO! Don't you get it, I love you?'

Inuyasha lifted one clawed hand to Kagome's cheek and whispered, "Bitch…"

Kagome blushed and closed the distance between them, throwing her arms around his neck and brushing her lips against his. It was just a chaste kiss, sweet and tender. As she pulled away, she blushed but looked deep into his eyes, willing him to see the sincerity in her eyes. "I understand. I love you, too." She smacked his arm playfully and laughed, "But, darn it! Couldn't you have picked something else?"

He lifted her chin and claimed her lips again. This time, with less chastity and more fire.

Inuyasha smirked and pulled her closer, "What? I suppose you could have preferred 'as you wish'?"

A/N: My favorite movie is "The Princess Bride." If you've seen it, the ending might have a little more meaning…it you haven't, go rent it now, darn it!


End file.
